Turkey Cracks Down On Protestors

ISTANBUL – Hundreds of riot police clashed with protesters in Istanbul’s Taksim Square on Tuesday, as protests against the government of Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan intensified.

The latest violence began Tuesday morning when police moved past barriers erected by the protesters and into the square to scatter a small number of people who have been camped there to protest redevelopment of the square.

Hundreds more protesters nearby, many wearing gas masks, joined to charge toward police, throwing Molotov cocktails and rocks, and police responded with round after round of tear gas canisters and frequent blasts from water cannons.

Tourists fled hotels near the square, covering their mouths with napkins, as clouds of noxious gas spread over a large area downwind of the center of the protests.